Listen up, Buttercup
by ButterfliesforHeartbeats
Summary: Liam's kidnapped by a lady (term applied loosely) who wants a chat with Scott. Basically a loose storyline to cover up shameless hurt/comfort between Scott and Liam, as Liam has officially won me over. No spoilers, no slash, borderline fluff.
1. Chapter 1

"So Liam," Scott turned to him, "How has your first month been?"

Liam had been dosing on Scott's couch, but jumped awake. "Alright. I have a biology test tomorrow that's gonna suck."

"Do you want help studying?" Scott asked.

"Nah, that's ok."

"Are you sure?" Scott pressed: Liam wasn't taking this nearly seriously enough. "I don't want any of this - " He motioned around to where Stiles, Lydia, Malia, Kira, and the rest were laying around his room. "To get in the way of school. Do you need to stop coming to all of these pack meets?"

"NO!" Liam answered hurriedly, panicking. "No, it's okay, even if I don't do good on the test, I'll do all the extra credit, okay? Please, I'll be fine, it's not that big a deal."

"Whoa, hay, relax -" Stiles butted in. "Scott wouldn't make you stop coming to the pack meets."

"'Course not. I just don't want you to feel like you have to make everything happen. Why don't I take you home so you can go ahead and get some extra studying in?"

Liam knew Scott wouldn't let this one drop. He sighed and grabbed the sweatshirt he'd discarded beside him. "Yeah, okay."

Liam said goodnight to everyone else and followed Scott outside, putting on the helmet Scott handed him and climbing on behind the alpha. Once home, he gave Scott the helmet back, thanked him for the ride, and went on inside. The older werewolf always insisted on waiting until Liam had made it into the house before driving away, even though the beta had told him on numerous occasions how much of a dork that made him.

Dropping himself into bed next to the textbook and notes he had abandoned earlier, Liam rubbed his face and really did try to study. His efforts carried him through for about another ten minutes, before he fell asleep against the pages of his book.

* * *

When Liam woke up again, it was only part way. He felt like he was swimming. Everything was bleary and he couldn't finish any thought. After a few minutes, his groggy state slowly began to worry him, and he forcefully tried to wake himself up. Eventually he was able to focus his eyes, to find that while he was in _a_ bed, it absolutely not _his_ bed. Or room. After another minute, he became aware of a sharp pain coming from his wrists. After a brief, panicked jerk, he determined that they were tied in front of him. He managed to conclude that this was probably not a good thing, and that if he could start thinking straight he would probably start freaking out.

A brief pause, and he pulled it together enough to close his eyes and shake his head.

"Aw," A voice began, sounding like it came from a funnel. "Is the puppy waking up?"

Liam squinted, and barely made out someone's form above him. Agonizingly slowly, he was able to focus and think more quickly. As soon as he could, he jerked a bit. This led him to discover that he was also bound by his thighs and ankles.

"Don't squirm so much, sweetie. Those are chains coated in wolfsbane: I put some cloth underneath them so you don't get burned if you sit still. The silver is just a fun little touch. And don't worry, it's just a little wolfsbane in your system. You'll be just fine."

"Wh-what?" Liam managed. "Who a-a-are you?"

"You don't have to worry, honey bun." The person answered. Liam thought it was a woman. Tall. Heavy set. She looked like a heavy weight lifter. With silver and wolfsbane, apparently, which made for one very scary character with an affinity for nicknames. Which was so gross.

"What do you w-want?" Liam slurred.

"Just a safe, uninterrupted chat with your alpha," She answered, chipper. "Did you know that Mr. Scott McCall is a very popular person who is very difficult to find?"

He was having difficulty tracking what she was saying. "Wh-why - ?" He began slowly.

"Why is he difficult to track? Or why am I tracking him at all? Well, you're a curious little pup, aren't you?"

Liam looked up at her, annoyed. "Shut-up," He said slowly, and thought _'You're a creep'_. The woman laughed.

"And feisty! Well, lambchops, I'll call up our alpha friend in just a few hours and all your questions will be answered. Plus, if everything goes to plan, you'll be free to go on back unscathed." She walked out of the room, which was really small. It was a bedroom with one window which was covered by curtains.

Yeah, he was officially freaking out.

* * *

Liam sat for ages before he finally felt like he was thinking clearly again. When that time came, he immediately began trying to wiggle out of his bindings. There was a silver chain wrapped around his wrists, thighs, and ankles. Under the chains on his wrists and ankles were thick pieces of cloth that looked like ripped up sweatshirt material. The chains hadn't been wrapped too tightly, but the ends had been joined by a padlock. Looking down, he also noticed that his claws were out, and part of the reason he was so confused was because his senses were on high alert: there was so much he was hearing, and smelling, and practically tasting that he couldn't make anything out of it at all. More clumsy than he had been since he was first turned, he grasped at his wolfy parts and started focussing.

Highly doubtful that the padlock had been coated in wolfsbane as well, he bent over to reach the lock at his thighs. Grabbing hold of the padlock, he wolfed out just long enough to break it. It was difficult to control, and he felt like it kept slipping out of his grasp, but it must have been the remains of the wolfsbane. Thankfully, he was able to accomplish what he needed to. He carefully pulled over the blanket and pushed the chain to the other side of the bed. Then he bent down further to try to work on his ankles. Soon, they were free as well. Unfortunately, however, he couldn't get a good grasp on his wrist padlock. He knew he was also being cautious about moving the chain too much, afraid it would slip off the pads underneath. Soon, he gave up, and scooted himself off the edge of the bed.

He tiptoed to the window, and found it sealed shut. He seemed to be in a motel room, or an apartment, possibly. It was in the middle of the day. Slowly, he moved toward the door of the bedroom. If he was able to sneak close enough to the exit, he could most likely make a break for it. If his captor was any form of supernatural, she'd have been able to hear his heart beat. Hell, he could smell his own fear distinctly.

Slowly, Liam opened the door. Even more slowly, he inched down the short hallway. At the end of it, he saw an open space (which was probably a kitchenette) and the door he had been looking for. After making it to the end of the hallway noiselessly, he didn't even risk peaking his head around the corner. He ran.

He made it about five steps and suddenly there was an arm around his neck pulling him back so sharply that his legs flew out in front of him.

"Sneaky little mutt, aren't you?" His captor hissed in his ear. His hands flew up because he couldn't breathe, and as he tugged at the arm around his throat the chain he had left at his wrists slipped loose.

The chain slid onto his bare arms and started burning his skin with a hiss. Immediately, he felt the change taking place and the hold he had on his wolf form grew wobbly and hard to grasp. Liam yelped at the startling, overwhelming pain.

"Ow- OW! Oh p-please, take it off, stop it, it hurts, please -" He begged, squirming ferociously.

The woman sighed. "Now look what you did." She carried him over to a small couch tucked in one corner of the room and threw him down, digging his claws out of her arm like they were splinters. She dug into a pocket and found the key to the padlock, and threw off the chains. He collapsed on the couch holding his hands out gingerly to keep them from touching anything, sucking in deep, shaky breaths and strongly fighting back tears.

"Now, have you learned your lesson? Or am I going to have to collar you?" The woman asked. She sounded... amused. "Come on, back to your room." She grabbed his arm, so - so close to his fresh wounds, and he panicked again.

"Oh no, please," He said, twisting away desperately.

"Well, do you want the collar or do you want me to tie your wrists again?" She asked. Liam grew quiet. Definitely neither, but if she even tried to touch his wrists again he would probably pass out. "That's what I thought," She answered herself, taking his silence as approval. "It's a good thing it's time for us to take our trip, or else you would have been going right back into those chains whether you liked it or not, buttercup."

 _next chap: Scott to the rescue! hurt/comfort and cute beta Liam to come! guilty pleasures all over the place as I enjoy a weekend at home by myself. Reviews/constructive criticism always welcomed and loved and craved etc._


	2. Chapter 2

To Liam's chagrin, his captor muscled him back into the room he had been in and _literally_ took a collar out of a bag sitting in one corner.

"Are you kidding me?" He asked breathlessly. She chuckled.

"'Fraid not, honey. I had just gotten it for shits and giggles, but guess who's not very obedient?" She gripped his chin for emphasis, he guessed. "Now you're going to behave, aren't you?" His cheeks were squished together. "I'm going to put this collar on and I'll be using one of your favorite chains to go along with it." Stiles would never let this go if he ever found out. The woman let go of Liam's arm and he remained still, somewhat subdued. She unbuckled the collar (a thick, leather one) and put it around his neck. As she buckled it, he wrinkled his nose. He was never going to live this down. He was also going to punch anyone who mentioned it in the nose.

Liam tensed when she brought the chain over and looped it through the link on the collar. "Move the way I tell you to and I'll keep the chain from touching you, sugar." She told him, grabbing it up close to keep it from laying on his back. "Now go on and start walking." And he did.

She led Liam out of the room (it _was_ a motel) and to a navy blue van and opened the back sliding door. She motioned for him to climb in and sit on the bench seat, and threw the chain over the back.

"Stay," She ordered, looking pleased with herself for all of the dog puns she was managing to make. Once she slid the door closed again, he rolled his eyes. The van was hot and so stuffy that Liam felt like he couldn't hardly breathe. His friendly neighborhood kidnapper took her good sweet time walking around to the driver's side, as well. Once she was in, settled, and had turned the vehicle on, she dug into the glove box in front of the passenger seat and took out a cell phone, which she proceeded to throw at him.

"Call your alpha, sugar britches." She told him, "And say exactly what I tell you to."

Liam dialed Scott's number, fingers shaking because of the pain of jarring his injured wrists. Thankful that Scott's was one of the numbers he had memorized (next to his home phone, and his mother's and step father's), he held the phone up to his ear and waited. "Speaker," She commanded then, and he obliged.

"Hello?" Scott's voice came through.

"Scott, it's Liam -"

"Liam! Where were you today? Are you alright? Why aren't you using your phone?" Scott began quickly.

"Tell him you're fine."

"I'm okay, Scott."

"Who was that?" The other asked immediately. "Is someone with you?"

The woman nodded her head.

"Y-yes," Liam began uncertainly.

"Who is it? Are you in trouble?"

"That all depends on you, Mr. McCall." She spoke up.

"Who are you?" Scott asked. Liam couldn't make out how Scott was reacting, and it made him a little more nervous.

"My name is Lisa Argent."

* * *

They had decided to meet in the parking lot behind the vet's office. Scott seemed really serious when Lisa had introduced herself, like he knew her. Liam thought her name sounded familiar, but couldn't place it. Maybe it was some connection from the dead pool.

Liam got glimpses of where they were heading from the front window, but honestly he was too concerned about not moving to keep from jostling the chain. They arrived in decent time to find Scott waiting for them alone, as Lisa had instructed.

She parked and got out of the van. Instead of coming around to get Liam, however, she immediately approached Scott. Liam groaned, already feeling the air stagnate. He could just barely make out their conversation, senses dulled as the wolfsbane sluggishly filtered out of his system.

"Lisa Argent?" Scott assumed.

"And you're Scott McCall! The mysterious true alpha!" She returned.

"Where's Liam? And what do you want from us?" Scott asked, obviously forcefully remaining calm. Liam had never heard him like this before: Scott was always so sure that he could diffuse the situations, that their enemies were really just misinterpreting everything and that all they needed was a conversation to clear things up and calm everyone down. He just sounded angry. He sounded like he was just trying to keep it together. He sounded... like an alpha whose first turned beta was being threatened. Liam swallowed hard, conflicted and nervous.

"Sure, let's get right down to business then." Lisa responded cheerfully. "I want to know where Chris is."

Scott looked at her reproachfully, the expression sitting strangely on his face. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that this is Chris Argent's last known location before his daughter's death, and none of my contacts know where he is now. You're the mysterious link. I want to know where he is."

"You don't know where Chris Argent is." Scott stated. "So you kidnapped a sophomore to force me to tell you."

"We have a winner, mama bear!" Lisa told him. "The sophomore's my insurance. I assumed a stand off with a true alpha would be tricky, and as you have reportedly kept from killing anyone, I couldn't in good conscience kill you. So, I did some digging and found you had turned a beta. A feisty one. Cutie. Now, you give me the information I need to know, and you get your charming puppy back. Sounds like a fair deal to me."

"I want to see him." Scott demanded.

"Hold your horses, bossy pants." Lisa retorted. "All I need is a location. What's your rush?"

"He's injured." Scott hissed. "I am going to have my beta right where I can see him before I tell you anything. Liam hasn't killed or turned anyone so you can't kill him, and I'm the one with the location. I will see my beta before I say a word."

Lisa chuckled. "The boy knows what he wants." She conceded. "Alright." She walked over to the van and slid the door open. Liam hardly restrained himself from feverishly gulping in the fresh air. "Sorry, sugar, shoulda cracked a window for ya." She joked, grabbing the chain and drawing it and him meticulously out of the vehicle.

Liam got his first clear view of Scott. He was tense, and his hands were clenched into fists. His face was set in a scowl.

"Where are you hurt?" Scott asked, almost snapping. Was he angry at Liam, too? Did he think Liam should have kept this from happening? Or that he should have found a way to escape? Cautiously, Liam raised his hands a little, showing Scott the scorched skin. It had just started to scab over, so at least his body was beginning to kick back into gear.

Scott growled. Actually growled. As in full on, angry, "I'm going to rip something apart" growled. Liam glanced up quickly and, shocked, saw that Scott's eyes had gone red. He fought back a whine as his own wolf side picked up on it.

"You have a pretty good track record for non violence," Lisa observed. "Let's not test those boundaries."

"Exceptions can be made." Scott retorted, his voice still gravelly.

"No they can't." Lisa answered. "Now you've seen him. The wounds were caused by a scuffle with wolfsbane soaked chains. Otherwise he is in perfect health, possibly sluggish from the poison. A location, please."

"As of last month, Chris Argent was in France." Scott spat. "I don't know cities, or provinces, or even that he's still there."

Lisa stood for a moment, calculating, before finally giving a nod. "I believe you. Now, if I give you back your cub, are you going to let me leave peacefully? Or does sweetcheeks need to be dropped off a few towns over?"

Scott glowered at her. "Give. Me. My. Beta."

Lisa nodded amicably, and unbuckled the collar from around Liam's neck before patting his back. "Y'all be good now."

"Liam," Scott ordered, "Here, now." Liam obeyed, scurrying over slightly behind Scott. Lisa winked at them and Scott continued staring her down until she had driven away.

* * *

Liam waited anxiously for a few minutes in silence, fidgety and unsure. "S-Scott?" He asked timidly, eyeing the alpha's back, which was heaving with the breaths Scott was taking.

When he heard Liam's voice, Scott whirled around and began patting Liam all over frantically. "Are you okay? You aren't hurt anywhere else, right?"

"What? No, no I'm fine. Even my hands are getting better now." He lifted them up so Scott could see. His alpha immediately grabbed his arms and lifted them closer.

"Does it still hurt?"

"A- I mean, a little, but not too bad." Scott didn't hesitate in drawing out what pain there was from Liam's wrists. "Oh, you didn't have to -" The alpha sent Liam a look when he started protesting, and Liam slumped. He sent up a cautionary glance as Scott continued inspecting his wounds. "You aren't... I mean, are you mad at me?"

Scott started up. "What?" He asked incredulously. "Why would you think that? Of course not, Liam, I'm not mad at you."

"You just... I've never seen you so angry..." Liam answered, trying to explain what he was feeling.

"I was angry because you were in danger, Liam." Scott explained softly. "You didn't do anything wrong, ok?" Liam nodded, suddenly exhausted. "Come on home with me, ok? Call your parents and go ahead and come over for the weekend." Liam nodded and followed Scott over to his bike.

* * *

Within the hour, Liam had settled into Scott's bed after a shower and borrowing some of Scott's clothes. While Liam had showered, Scott made a call to Chris and explained the situation, but finished up before Liam knew. The kid was obviously tired, probably from a decline in the adrenaline from the afternoon.

Scott also called Stiles and everyone else over. Stiles brought pizza, but Liam didn't feel much like eating so Scott got him a glass of milk and an apple. He needed to eat something, as he hadn't all day. Liam forced it down because Scott insisted.

No one said anything about how Liam was dressed in Scott's sweatshirt and was practically attached to his alpha's hip, who seemed entirely satisfied with that. They settled on Scott's bed, leaning against the wall, while Kira draped herself over the bottom edge of the bed, Stiles and Malia sprawled on the floor and Lydia pulled over Scott's desk chair.

"Listen up, buttercup," Stiles chuckled, "Apparently we know how to get under Scott's skin now. Maybe we really do need to keep Liam on a leash." Liam shot him a warning look. That hit a little too close to home. Scott threw an arm over Liam's shoulders, however, and laughed it off with all of them. There were some things Stiles definitely didn't need to know.

* * *

The end! Thanks to everyone for reading! Also, if you have any criticism/reviews I would be so grateful! Happy 4th, y'all!


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